A forest may look like a collection of separate trees.

Each tree appears to stand alone.

But beneath the soil, something much more complicated is happening.

Hidden among roots and soil particles is an enormous network of fungal threads connecting plants to one another.

Through these underground partnerships, trees and fungi exchange nutrients, carbon, and chemical information.

The forest above ground may look divided.

Underground, it is connected.

In The Underground Network That Lets Forests Share Resources, we explore the fascinating science of mycorrhizal networks and the relationships between fungi, roots, and forest ecosystems.

We begin beneath the forest floor.

Fungi grow microscopic thread-like structures called hyphae.

These structures can spread  ...